Laws against supplying and feeding prohibited feed to poultry
Swill is material that:
- contains, or may contain, the carcass of a mammal or bird
- contains, or may contain, material derived from a mammal or bird (including meat, eggs, blood, faeces)
- has been in contact with either of these (including food or food scraps from a restaurant, hotel or home that may have been in contact with meat or meat products or other material derived from a mammal or bird).
- products rendered in accordance with the current Australian standard for the hygienic rendering of animal products
- gelatine
- used cooking oil that was used for cooking in Australia and has been collected and processed in accordance with the National standard for recycling of used cooking fats and oils intended for animal feeds
- milk of Australian origin or milk lawfully imported into Australia as feed for livestock
- milk products or milk by-products made in Australia and derived from milk of Australian origin or a milk product lawfully imported into Australia as feed for livestock.
What is poultry?
Poultry include all birds of the order Galliformes (including chickens, turkeys, pheasants, partridge, quail, guinea fowl, peafowl), ducks, geese, pigeons and doves.
Food that must not be fed to poultry
Food waste from various sources could contain swill. Household, supermarket, commercial or industrial waste, including restaurant food, butcher shop waste and bakery waste, could contain banned items.
Do not feed these foods to poultry:
- table scraps that contain swill
- meat pies
- sausage rolls
- bacon and cheese rolls
- Caesar salad with bacon pieces
- deli meats
- eggs
- milk or milk products not of Australian origin (unless imported as feed for livestock)
- untreated used cooking oils and fats
- anything that has been in contact with swill through collection, storage or transport in contaminated containers (such as meat trays or takeaway food containers).
Legally, you can feed poultry:
- milk or milk products of Australian origin or legally imported into Australia as feed for livestock
- bakery or vegetable scraps that do not contain, and have had no contact with, eggs, meat or meat products
- fruit, vegetables and cereals
- meals made from meat, blood or bone that have been purchased from a reputable produce store or feed merchant (look for feed produced by an accredited feed supplier under a quality assurance program such as FeedSafe®)
- rendered animal fat and treated cooking oils in accordance with Queensland's Biosecurity Act 2014.
Responsible disposal of food waste
Businesses that prepare and sell food have a responsibility to dispose of food waste safely.
Food waste considered swill should be placed in an appropriate waste bin for collection and disposal.
Learn more about responsible disposal of food waste in this short video.
Report swill feeding or possible disease
Contact Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23 if you suspect that:
- swill is being supplied to poultry owners
- poultry are being fed swill
- your poultry are showing any clinical signs of Newcastle disease or infectious bursal disease.
Also consider...
- Read the Farm Biosecurity toolkit and find resources for biosecurity planning.
- Use the Farm Biosecurity Action Planner to help assess the risks on your farm and take steps to address them.
- Learn more about farm biosecurity from Biosecurity Queensland.
- Watch a series of biosecurity related educational videos from Farm Biosecurity.
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